


MV 14 Myrna Reborn

by katbear



Series: Master's Voice [14]
Category: Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Reality, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-10
Updated: 2014-08-10
Packaged: 2018-02-12 15:49:18
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,600
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2115711
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/katbear/pseuds/katbear
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The new year continues with completion for one project and a new experience, but an old issue raises its head.</p>
            </blockquote>





	MV 14 Myrna Reborn

**Author's Note:**

> Rating: NC17 for explicit sexual activity  
> Thanks: To the beta readers who made this a better story (Merry Amelie, starhunter79, Lady Saddlebred). All mistakes are my own.  
> Spoilers: None, alternate reality set in 21st century Earth in fictional part of the western U.S.
> 
> Notes: 1. The primary setting is not based on any actual specific real location or persons but is a composite of possible geography, town features, transplanted state university, etc. 2. The federal agencies mentioned are real but liberties have been taken with some policies, practices and job duties. 3. The base story plus the first eleven sequels constitute what I consider the first story arc of Master's Voice and takes them up to the point in their internal timeline two months after Quilan moved in with Ben. Story 13 begins the next major story arc.
> 
> 4\. It’s been a while since I’ve posted, so here’s a reminder of some of the key characters. Quilan Finn – law enforcement ranger at Keogami National Forest, Ben Kennan – motorcycle mechanic, Jane Brandon – Ben & Qui’s landlady, Rafaela Romero, another boarder at Jane’s house, Celesta (Cel) – Rafa’s horse, Liz and Linda – lesbian friends of Jane, Reverend Charles Jenkins – gay pastor at Jane & Rafa’s church, Frank Mendoza – Ben’s boss at Midway Motorcycles, Maureen Kennan – Ben’s sister, Mattie – university student intern filling in between semesters, UPA - United Public Access program at the university, WCC – Wildlife Conservation Center, Mikhail Petrovich Kuznetsov (Misha) – student at university
> 
> Story Arc One  
> Master's Voice  
> MV 2 - Honeymoon  
> MV 3 - First Session  
> MV 4 - Morning Blues  
> MV 5 – Relocation  
> MV 6 – Snow Falls  
> MV 7 – Attentions  
> MV 8 - Giving Thanks  
> MV 9 - First Review  
> MV 10 – Questions  
> MV 11 – Merry Christmas  
> MV 12 – Happy New Year?
> 
> Story Arc Two  
> MV 13 - New Beginnings  
> MV 14 - Myrna Reborn

Ben stepped inside and quickly closed the front door behind him. He shivered for a moment as he took off his heavy jacket, gloves and scarf, then hung them up in the closet. The weather had been typical of late January, crisp and penetrating.

"Damn, but it's cold out there tonight." Ben's stomach grumbled in response to the appreciative sniff he took as he headed for the kitchen, hoping he wasn't too late for dinner.

Rafa was just clearing the table as Ben entered, but Jane smiled at him. "Saved the extras in the oven, so everything's still hot. You look like you could use a good warming up and there's plenty left, so help yourself to as much as you want."

"Thanks, I appreciate that. We were so busy I didn't get a chance to eat much lunch, so I'm hungry as a bear." Ben opened the oven door and savored both the warmth and the sight of the big pan of lasagna.

"I'm thinking we could wait a wee bit for dessert and give Ben a chance to catch up." Qui turned around from his spot by the sink where he had already begun washing dishes.

"Of course," said Jane. "I'll put on a fresh pot of coffee and water for tea, so that'll take a while to get properly brewed anyway. That will give me time to make the whipped cream, too."

For the next fifteen minutes everyone kept busy with their various tasks while Ben worked his way through a large square of luscious lasagna, peas and garlic-cheese rolls. By the time he was finished, the other three were ready for dessert and were at the table again.

"Got a new recipe here, so you folks get to be my guinea pigs." Jane cut into a large sponge cake dusted with powdered sugar as the others poured coffee or tea for themselves. The cake turned out to be in three layers, one filling being strawberry jam and the other custard cream. After she cut her own slice, she pushed the cake and a bowl of whipped cream out to the middle of the table so each person could choose how much they wanted.

"A taste of heaven!" Qui closed his eyes a moment as he savored his first bite. "'Tis blessed we are to have such a fabulous cook taking care of us." He paused a moment while Jane thanked him, then turned to Ben. "Must have been a long day. You were out of here well before I left this morning."

"Yeah, the truck was packed up last night but we had to be over at the airport hangar and set up by nine, so one of the guys swung by and picked me up down at the corner. We got back to Midway pretty late, so he was nice enough to drop me off, even though it was out of his way."

"Glad to hear that you've got some good coworkers." Qui took a sip of tea. "So how did the training go?"

"It went well. There was a little bigger turnout than we expected for this time of year, fourteen students, so it was a good thing we had the extra bikes. Tony did most of the actual instructing, but I'm glad I boned up on the laws, because I did get questions when I was helping with the hands-on portions. I know Tony and the cops who were monitoring the sessions were listening, but everybody seemed happy with the results, so I guess I must have done okay.   I'm looking forward to next month's class."

"I'm sure you did fine," said Qui. "If you had been steering anybody wrong they would have jumped in to make the correction."

"Yeah, you're probably right." Ben poured himself some more milk. "I did find out a little more about Tony. We were on a break and one of the cops, a Sergeant Tulinski I think, was ribbing Tony about missing the nice weather and some old TV show called CHIPs. Turns out Tony used to be a motorcycle cop in California for several years. He made it to Sergeant, too, before he got out."

"That sounds fascinating," said Jane. "Law enforcement is an honorable and exciting profession." Her face was straight, but there was a little twinkle in her eye as she glanced at Qui.

"Aye, we try to keep it that way, at least the honorable part." Qui smiled. "But I can do without certain types of excitement." He stood up to gather his used dishes and added dryly, with a glance at Ben, "Not that there's usually much exciting to be worrying about, though."

Ben rolled his eyes just a bit, remembering some of their conversations about his worries over Qui and the dangers out in the forest. "Let's hope it stays that way."

Qui laughed as he headed for the sink to finish washing up.

*** ***

Ben finished his email, a note to Maureen describing his first day of helping with the motorcycle training, and hit the send button. He did a quick check for any other messages before shutting off his laptop. After standing and stretching, he wandered out into their main room.

Qui was at the small table. It was covered with newspapers and he had the tub of Snoguard open.

"Hey, what's up?" Ben wandered over to watch as Qui spread a dollop of the goop over a boot.

"Just doing some touching up," replied Qui absently. "Probably have some long patrols out in remote areas coming up soon, lot of hiking, skiing, and snowshoeing." He used a rag to work the Snoguard into the leather. "You're welcome to use some if you like."

"Nah, that's okay. Walking to the bus stop is about the only time I'm out in the snow with my work boots. The walk is getting to be a pain, but it's mostly on the road." Ben sat down in the other chair and watched for a few minutes before speaking again. "Are you still off this Sunday?"

"Aye." Qui put down one boot and started on the other. "The weather is supposed to stay clear for several days, so I was thinking we might want to get out of the house, maybe take a trip out to see Magnus. We could probably both use the exercise and it would be good to practice your cross country. And don't forget we still have paperwork to finish."

"I suppose that might be sort of nice… and I'm sorry about putting off those forms." Ben's voice trailed off. He stared down at the newspaper and rubbed random patterns with his right forefinger.

Qui paused, blinked. He put the rag and boot down as he sat back in his chair. "If that's a problem, Ben, we don't need to be doing that. 'Twas just a suggestion." Qui shrugged. "If you're after wanting to do something else we can certainly talk about it."

"Well, yeah." Ben stilled his roving finger, laid his hand flat on the table. He took a deep breath before looking up at his mate. "You remember that I told you a little while back I finally ordered the rest of the parts I need to fix Myrna?"

Qui nodded.

"Everything showed up yesterday at the shop. I checked it all and I'm ready to go with the final repairs."

"That's grand. I know how much you've been missing the poor thing. If that's what you're wanting for Sunday, I'd be happy to give you a ride into town."

"The ride would be great." Ben cleared his throat. "I was really hoping, though, that you'd stay and give me a hand."

"With fixing your motorcycle?" Qui stared, both eyebrows raised and his mouth partly open.

"Yes. It would be pisser."

Qui stared a moment longer, then laughed. "Ah, I get it. You're having me on, boyo. That was a good one." He chuckled as he shook his head. "Aye, a real good one."

"It's not a joke, dammit." Ben sat up stiffly. "I've already cleared it with my boss to use the shop Sunday. There won't be anybody else there, just us. I want you to come in and help."

"Ben, you know I don't have any idea of which part of an engine is the arse and which is the front. If I did, we probably would never have met. I'd just be useless dead weight."

Ben's thoughts briefly flashed back to his first trip to Qui's old house after he had finagled an invite to work on his rackety pickup, but he quickly put that out of his mind. "Alright, maybe the mechanical part isn't really your thing, but you know a lot about tools and you could help hold things up, and if it's a really finicky part you could bring a book or something. And it probably won't take more than an hour or two to finish everything."

"The whole idea is ridiculous. That's your turf - I'd be in your way, slowing you down, and probably be bored silly myself. We'd both end up irritated with each other and that's not good."

Ben abruptly stood up. "Why the fuck can't you just –" He clenched his jaw, lips pursed as he breathed through his nose. "Fine, just fucking forget it. Sorry I bothered you." Ben turned on his heel to leave.

"Ben, don't." Qui rose and hurried around to stop his lover. "Obviously I'm missing something here. I don't understand what it is you're really wanting."

For a long moment Ben held himself tensely, biting the inside of his cheek. He finally looked up into Qui's eyes and realized his puzzlement was genuine. He took a deep breath and forced himself to relax. "I know we don't have as much time together as we'd like, so do you understand that I wouldn't ask you to do something unless it was important to me?"

"Aye, I could see that," said Qui slowly, his brow furrowed.

"Well, Myrna is also really important to me. She's been a big part of my life, and now you're a huge piece of my life, too. I want…I guess I was trying to find a way to have both of you together." Ben swallowed, shrugged. "Look, it was probably a stupid idea. I know you're not particularly fond of Myrna and it really is just a waste of your time, being cooped up for an afternoon in a smelly garage. Let's just forget it, okay?"

Qui's brow suddenly cleared as he sighed. "Saints, I really am a bloody eejit. I don't dislike Myrna; what I don't like is worrying about what might happen to you when you're out riding her. And the bloody garage, well, that IS your turf, isn't it." He shook his head. "I am so sorry, Ben. All that time you spend out in my 'damned trees' and here I am, begrudging you a few hours in the place where you feel happy."

"Don't worry about it. I've been dragging my feet on the forms, even though I know how you worry about that, and I've kind of gotten used to the trees 'cause I'm always with you when we go out there. If you could just give me a ride, that'll be fine."

"No, it's not fine." Qui stepped up, gathered Ben into his arms and kissed him. After he pulled back from the long buss, he still held his lover loosely. "Ben, we agreed a while back that we both have to work at our relationship if this is going to be successful for us, even if it's painful at times. I know I'm still figuring out how to be a good partner, so if I'm stomping all over you then you need to be taking a two by four to my thick head. Sometimes you have to spell things out for me if I'm not paying attention, and evidently this was such an occasion. Sunday we will go to Midway TOGETHER and do whatever you need to be doing. I will talk to our lovely Jane about packing us a lunch in case it takes longer than you were thinking. It will be your day, love."

"Are you sure? I don't want this to be a boring drag."

"It won't be." Qui smiled. "I'll be with you, remember? And if I do get bored, I can always amuse myself ogling your sexy arse while you're working on your motorbike."

Ben laughed and pulled his mate into a fierce hug.

**** **** ****

"Looks like we've done about as much as we can on this lot for now. I think the next step is to decide if we're going to ask for any sort of legal advice or just go ahead with getting papers notarized for now." Qui took off his glasses and laid them on the table, then leaned back in his chair and stretched.

Ben fingered the ten folders on the table in front of him, one each for the drafts of their individual wills, durable powers of attorney, health-care proxies, living wills and medical releases. He had still felt a little guilty about asking Qui to come with him to work on Myrna when he hadn't fully stepped up to his side of the deal on completing their legal documents. That had led to them spending their Saturday evening trudging through forms.

"I guess we could wait to see a lawyer until after we figure out how, when and where to actually get married." Ben pushed the folders together into two stacks, one for him and the other for his mate. "No telling how long that might take, so I suppose it's better to get something in place now. If anything important changes, we can always update the forms."

"Good points." Qui pulled his stack of folders over to him and began flipping through them. "I've got the list of notaries that Liz recommended. You still wanting to get this done somewhere well out of town?"

"Definitely. I'd just feel more comfortable that way."

"I understand." Qui leaned over and picked up a large mailing envelope from the floor. He opened it and pulled out some papers. "Here's the list I got from Liz. We'll likely be needing to take at least a half day off if we can't find a notary who's available on a Sunday, but we can call around and see what's doable."

Qui handed the single sheet to Ben, then held the other sheets in one hand.

Ben looked at the list, nodded. "Yeah, there's several within an hour or two of here. If you want, I'll start making some calls with my cell phone and keep the questions general."

"That'll be fine." Qui's attention was fixed on the form in front of him as he laid it out flat.

"Is there something else we need to work on?" Ben waved a hand vaguely over the table. "I thought this was everything we agreed we needed to get started."

"Aye, 'tis." Qui looked at Ben. "There's something else we've never really talked about much, though. I got my W2 in the mail today and that made me look at some other things I don't usually pay much attention to. It's got to do with money."

Ben twitched, his shoulders hunched and his brow furrowed into a scowl. "Yeah, I know we didn't go into details last October when we were sorting out rent and shit, but if this is about trying to give me money for school or you paying a bigger share of the bills, you know I don't take handouts."

"Jaysus." Qui's lips tightened into a thin line. "I can't even be bringing up the subject without you bristling up like a pissed-off badger. Did you hear me offering to pay your way on anything before you went off like a fucking rocket? No." Qui punctuated the answer to his own question with a pointed finger. "I DO know you've got a stick up your stubborn, prideful arse about certain things, but this is very important and we need to be able to discuss touchy issues like adults without getting in each other's face." Both of his hands were flat on the table. "I want to do something for your sorry arse because I love you and it won't put a bloody penny in your pocket unless I die."

The anger on his mate's face made Ben's mouth snap shut on the retort that had been on his lips. He took a slow, deep breath and forced his shoulders to unclench as he recognized the validity of Qui's point even if he didn't appreciate how that point had been expressed. "Sorry. I guess I did over-react without listening." He took another breath, blinked as Qui's last word finally penetrated. "What the hell do you mean, if you die? You can't die, I won't allow it."

Qui sighed, a gusty breath as he relaxed back into a slouch. "And I'm sorry I growled at you." He gave a brief grin. "I'm surely not planning on leaving this earth anytime soon, but this is about planning. It's something related to work that I'd really like to be doing."

"Wait a minute, I thought you told me you weren't going to start anything that involved your personnel people."

"I did, and it doesn't." Qui laid a black and white form in front of Ben. "I've checked it out online and this is something I can mail in directly and nobody here locally sees it."

Ben looked at the form and read, "Form TSP dash three, Designation of Beneficiary. Is this like some kind of insurance or something?"

"No, not really." Qui shook his head. "TSP stands for Thrift Savings Plan. It's a government savings plan, sort of like a civilian 401K deal. When I first started working for the feds, my boss told me I needed to start contributing at least enough to get the free money being handed out as matching funds, which was five percent. I didn't need much for myself, so I signed up for the max of ten percent of my salary." He shrugged a bit sheepishly. "You'll probably think I was a right gack, but once I got it figured that they were taking the right amount of money out of my pay I never paid it much mind. I'm thinking it must have been increasing every time I got a raise since it was a percentage, but I'm telling you the truth I was feckin' gobsmacked when I dug up the last few years of those reports I been tossing in the drawer and saw how much money is in the bloody thing. And after I picked my arse up off the floor, I knew I had to fix it so you could get the money if something happens to me."

Ben tilted his head a little and smiled. "Okay, how much money does the poor underpaid civil servant have squirrelled away?"

Qui sucked on a front tooth for a moment. "You need to remember it's been building for a bloody big number of years. Ten percent plus the extra five percent, going for twenty-one years, I figure. And I got some promotions along the way. And some raises."

"Okay. How much?" Ben smiled indulgently, thinking Qui was embarrassed about a few thousand dollars, maybe even a few tens of thousands after all that time.

"Right on for three hundred thousand dollars."

"Jesus Christ!" Ben stared, mouth open, for a long moment before he coughed and could speak again. "You mean to tell me you're sitting on three. Hundred. Thousand. Fucking dollars?"

"Well, not exactly. 'Tis some special kind of retirement money and, being the government, there's rules about using it. I'm pretty sure I can get a loan of my own money that I put in whenever I need to, but if you just want to pull some out for good before you're old enough they take away a fecking lot in taxes."

"And you never bothered to mention this?"

"It was always just a number on a piece of paper, not something that meant anything to me. And like I said earlier, we never really talked about money once we decided who was paying what for the rent and food, so I didn't have to think about it then either."

"Yeah, I showed you my pay stub and you sort of hand-waved yours away while you were laying claim to two-thirds of the rent payment. What else do we need to discuss about money?" Ben leaned on the table with his forearms, his expression halfway between annoyed and angry with a touch of amazed bemusement in one eyebrow.

"I don't like talking to you about money because you're always so touchy about it. Or at least you're damned touchy about how much you have or don't have."

"Hey, I said I was sorry." Ben sat straight up in the chair, shoulders pulled back, lips tight. He took four slow breaths before relaxing again, reminding himself he needed to work on his hair-trigger reaction to this topic. "Alright, fair point. Obviously I haven't gotten over that yet." Ben rubbed a hand on his thigh. "It's just… well, every time I have to write a check or look at my budget, I can't help remembering how things used to be and how much has changed. Sometimes that hurts more than I like to deal with."

"I understand you still have issues about a lot of things, but there are going to be times we need to move forward when something is affecting both of us."

"I know." Ben nodded, chewed on his lip for a moment. "Would it help if I told you I would feel more comfortable about letting you pull so much of the freight on rent and shit if I knew how much you really bring home?"

"I suppose that's a fair point on your side." Qui sighed. "But I don't want to be hearing any snarky comments."

"Deal."

Qui got up and went to his desk. He rummaged in a bottom drawer for a minute and emerged with a crumpled, folded sheet of paper.

"Here. This one's pretty recent. It's the government's version of a pay stub – it's called a Leave and Earnings Statement." Qui sat down and folded his arms to wait. "And before you say it, yes, there is a bloody electronic version that they're wanting me to use and I haven't bothered."

Ben carefully kept his expression neutral as he simply nodded before unfolding the mailer and smoothing it out on top of the wooden surface. With one finger he traced across the lines of boxes, trying to understand what they stood for.

"Okay, if I've got this right, you're a-" Ben squinted for a moment at the small print, "G S eleven? Is that like a rank or something?"

"No, it's just a pay grade. GS pay grades are from one to fifteen, with a bunch of steps across each one where you can get a raise for how long you've been in it." Qui shrugged. "Eleven is the highest I can go without having to be a supervisor, which is fine with me."

"Got it. Wow, lots of overtime. Lots of leave on the books. Do they let you take all that leave?"

Qui shook his head. "I usually donate a lot of the regular leave, too much work to go around to take it all most years. The sick leave just keeps accumulating." He knocked on the table. "Saints be praised, I've never had any major illnesses and such."

"Alright, on the face of it, I will be happy to concede that, given the level of income for each of us, it is a fair arrangement for you to pay the lion's share of our shared household expenses." Ben tapped the fingers of his right hand softly on the sheet as he considered how to frame his next words.

"That's nice to know. But you look like you've got more you want to be asking."

"Right. Umm, for gross income, you make a LOT more than I do, which I guess I’m mostly cool with. After all, you've got a twenty-year-plus head start on me job-wise and, like you said, you've had promotions and stuff. I don't really understand some of these codes, but it sure looks like there's a hell of a lot of deductions beyond just taxes?"

Qui leaned over and began pointing. "Those are the taxes, social security, the TSP thing that started this conversation, contributions for the WCC, some animal rescue groups, the UPA, Red Cross, a local land and wildlife conservation group…" Qui picked up the form for a moment. "Oh, and that one there is for savings bonds." He looked thoughtfully at the sheet before handing it back. "I haven't really thought much about those in a donkey's age either. Reckon I need to be looking into how many of those I've got so I can cash some in when I need to be buying another truck one of these days."

"Jesus Freaking Christ, you've also got a frigging boatload of savings bonds somewhere?   And you're giving away all this money every month?" Ben had to stop himself from going further. He held up a hand. "Alright, sorry, I promised no snarky comments. But I swear I do not understand you."

"Ben, I love you dearly, and I appreciate some of your issues with money because of how you were raised and what's happened to you, but you need to remember that money's just never been important to me except for making sure I have what I need to get by and what I can do with the rest."

"But you did start saving a lot when you when went to work for the feds."

"Aye, because back then a man I respected stayed on my arse until I did because he cared about his people. And in return, he made sure I got every bloody cent of government help there was to pay for my college courses. Since then I let saving take care of itself." Qui reached over and took Ben's hands within his own. "I've not had need of a lot of money in my life. A decent place to live, food, clothes, a truck that runs, a few indulgences like good tools, music, some books, that laptop… I was lucky enough to have what I needed and be happy with what I had." He squeezed Ben's hands. "Despite what you're probably thinking, I'm not totally clueless or irresponsible. I've always made sure my bills got paid on time and a lot of what I didn't need every month stayed in the bank – I've got a fair bit there for close to a year's worth of an emergency fund. But it's important to me that I also do some good with the money I don't need instead of wasting it on fripperies. That's what most of those deductions are for. Can you see that?"

"I'm trying, but it is still hard for me to think about money and not having enough to do things I want to do." Ben was starting to feel like a broken record, but it was still very much a sore spot for him.

Qui stood and pulled Ben up so he could embrace him. "I know, I know." He kissed Ben and then drew back to arm's length. "I have to admit that things are different for me now, too. I love you and want to take care of you, and maybe that means doing some things differently.   If I thought you'd let me, I'd pay for all the rent and food." Qui put a finger on Ben's mouth to forestall the rebellion that immediately started to threaten. "Aye, I know better than to even be suggesting such a thing. You've got your pride and self-respect; 'tis right that you want to be contributing. But Jaysus, I surely do want so much to be taking care of you, love.   That's why I nagged you about finishing the bloody forms and that's why I want to make you my beneficiary on this TSP thing. I've even been looking into getting some term life insurance."

"Qui, I love you, too. I can appreciate what you're trying to do, even if I don't understand a lot of other things about you." Ben hesitated, rolled his lower lip inside and then back out. "I hate to keep being a pain, but you do remember that I'm not ready to come out, right?"

"Aye, and I'm not trying to push, only to help. That's why I've been trying to find ways that won't put us at risk. We don't have to be married for me to do the TSP or non-government life insurance; I promise you nobody where I work will know. I won't do things behind your back, so I'm asking you to trust me and let me do this for you, for us."

Ben took a slow, deep breath as he looked up at Qui. "I do trust you." He nodded. "Whatever you want to do for this is fine with me." He leaned in and wrapped his arms around his mate. "Thank you for caring so much."

*** ***

Sunlight was just starting to peek in the bedroom window when a figure stirred. Ben snapped awake, momentarily disoriented. He blinked a few times before smiling and stretching as he remembered what was going to happen today.

"Hey, good morning." Ben tentatively cuddled closer to his prone mate and stroked a few fingers along his belly.

"Mmhghf." Qui turned on his side to face Ben, but also clutched his covers tightly as his head burrowed deeper into his pillow.

"C'mon, wakey, wakey. You're supposed to be the damned morning person." Ben planted a kiss on Qui's lips. "What's wrong, my studly one? Did I wear you out last night?" Ben snickered as he remembered their vigorous round of lovemaking.

One blue eye cracked open as Qui yawned. He mumbled a reply too low for Ben to hear.

Ben leaned in close, but before he knew what was happening there was a sudden eruption of motion. He grunted as a heavy body landed on top of him and he was flat on his back with his hands pinned above his head.

Qui stared down, eyes still hooded from sleep, and twitched his hips.

"Awww, fuck." Ben sucked in a breath at the very obvious evidence that his mate still had plenty of gas left in his tank.

"Is that what you were wanting, boyo?" rumbled Qui with a sly smile and another thrust. "Be happy to oblige your sexy arse, but it might be a little rough riding your motorbike later."

"No, yes… dammit." Ben laughed as Qui dove in for a deep kiss. While Qui was distracted, Ben bucked up and managed to get his legs around Qui's thighs.

Blankets went flying in one direction and pillows in another as they rolled and wrestled on the bed, both trying to sneak in a kiss and a tickle between bouts of laughter. Ben ended up on top when Qui wrapped his arms around his shoulders, and took advantage of his position to rut against Qui's erection. Qui enthusiastically returned the favor, thrusting his hips up as his hands slipped down to grab Ben's ass. It took only a few moments for both men to slide over the edge into orgasm.

"Mmmm…" Ben melted atop his mate.

"Good morning." Qui held Ben as he moved both of them sideways. He slipped a leg between Ben's and captured his mouth in a long slow kiss. "I'm thinking that's a nice way to start the day."

"Yeah, really wicked nice," murmured Ben as he snuggled close. They lay together, drowsing, until the smell of bacon drifting down the stairs enticed them into rising.

"That should be everything." Qui put the last plate in the cupboard before neatly hanging the dish towel on its rack.

"I packed lunches for both of you." Jane patted the two large lunch bags on a counter. "Don't worry about being back any particular time for supper. I'm trying out a new slow cooker recipe for Moroccan beef and sweet potato stew. I'll be putting everything together before Rafa and I head to church, but it likely won't be finished until at least six. If you do get back early, Rafa and I will probably be over to Liz and Linda's all afternoon."

"Sounds wonderful and I'm looking forward to it." Qui gave Jane a friendly hug. "Thanks for taking such good care of us."

"You're welcome, but I think you had best be leaving before your young man sets out on foot." There was a twinkle in Jane's eye as she started getting out ingredients.

Qui looked around, but both Ben and the lunch bags were already gone. He shook his head and gave a small snort. "Aye, he's surely been thinking about this a lot." He waved good-bye and left.

Ben was already in the rumbling truck. He had turned the ignition on so the notoriously slow-to-heat cab could get started and shifted impatiently as Qui made a leisurely trek out and slid into the driver's seat.

"I've got my work keys and our lunches, so we can leave now."

"That's good." Qui took his time adjusting his position. "You might want to be tightening that seat belt. I'd hate to have you fidget yourself all the way out the door." One corner of his mouth was twitching.

"If I could fly, I would. Be a hell of a lot faster than this wreck you jokingly call a truck." The anticipation that had started the morning at a slow simmer was starting to heat up.

"Still faster than walking, boyo." Qui put the shifter into Drive and pulled out. "Bet you're looking forward to summer."

"You don't know the half of it." Ben shuddered. "I hate not having my own ride. I've had to turn down stuff for UPA and the forest volunteers, and that damned walk out to the bus stop has gotten real old."

"The rest of us could help, you know." Qui kept his eyes on the road.

"Yeah, I do know, but it's not the same thing. I hate having to bother other people." Ben put a hand on Qui's arm. "Look, I appreciate that the help is there if I really need it, and I promise I'm not going to be out riding if the weather is bad, but I really miss having that ability to just up and go someplace if I want to."

Qui glanced at Ben and nodded. "Aye, I do understand. We'll get your girl running again."

"Thanks." Ben settled back onto the seat and was quiet the rest of the way, letting himself enjoy the hum of anticipation inside.

**** **** ****

"Hey, turn in here. We can park in the back." Ben smiled at the familiar sight of the storefront with its gleaming machines. His mind was already racing, reviewing his plans for the day.

Qui pulled into the alley behind Midway Motorcycles and put the truck into one of the slots along the wall. "I'll get lunch."

"Okay." Ben surveyed the alley, took a quick jog to the end and returned. "Everything's dry and clear in the central parking lot, so I'll be able to do a short test ride later. C'mon, let's get inside and get some heat going."

Ben unlocked the side entrance, opened the door, and invited Qui in with a flourish. "Welcome to Midway. This is the maintenance bay where I spend most of my time."

Qui stepped inside and looked around. "'Tis bigger than I thought it would be." He sniffed, then grinned. "Doesn't smell nearly as bad as I was thinking it would, either."

"Hey, we run a clean establishment here." Ben made a show of affronted indignation before grinning back. "A lot of the work is with the bikes off. We have a good exhaust system and Frank makes sure we clean up any spills and stuff. In any event, motorcycles don't have as much fuel and oil as cars. End result, you rarely get a lot of heavy machine smell lingering."

"Makes sense." Qui waved vaguely with one hand. "So where do you want me to put the lunch bags? And what is it you're wanting me to do?"

"Let's go to the break room.   I've got to get my coveralls from my locker. The restrooms are through there, too."

Qui dropped the lunch bags on the table while Ben got his coveralls and put them on, then followed Ben back out to the bay.

"Okay, let me give you a quick intro to the place, then we'll get my toolbox. Did you want to see the front where the showroom and accessories are?"

"No, that's fine."

Ben started pointing. "The big bay doors are closed most of the time when the weather is bad, unless somebody needs to fire up a bike or take one outside. We can also hook up an exhaust pipe to the bike if it's nasty out. That's Frank's office, then the door to the front, benches of workspace and special tools, break room. Those steel doors are to the parts vaults, and those bikes along the far wall are Frank's projects. Up there, those windows are to the upper customer lounge. We have a second floor with offices and the lounge." He jerked his head toward the outer door. "There's a small warehouse next to our building. We keep spare inventory, used bikes and customer bikes out there."

"You store customer bikes?"

"We get a fair number of people who want us to winterize their bikes and keep them here over the winter.   Any other questions before we get started?"

Qui didn't speak, instead taking a long, slow perusal of his surroundings. His gaze lingered on Ben and he stepped toward him.

"Something wrong?" Ben's brow furrowed a bit.

"No, not at all." Qui raised his hand and with two fingers traced the italic block letters of 'Kennan' on the breast of Ben's blue coveralls. He looked at Ben. "I'm just realizing how much you and this place fit together." A half smile lifted the left side of his mouth. "Like a second home, almost."

Ben was quiet for a moment as he looked around in turn. "I hadn't really thought about it like that, but that's probably a good way to put it, I guess. I feel good when I'm here, about the people and the place." He chewed on his lower lip for a few seconds before letting it go. "I think maybe it's because… well, I feel comfortable here, like I belong."

"That's a good thing." Qui nodded. "I'm glad I came," he continued softly. He took a deep breath and smiled. "So, let's be getting your motorbike fixed, then, shall we?"

Ben shook loose from the small reverie into which he had fallen and excitement flooded through him. "Pisser, let's do it." He practically bounced over to the long work bench and unlocked the chain on his toolbox. "Over here."

Toolbox in hand, Ben led the way to the corner of the bay where Myrna waited on support blocks for resurrection. "I've got everything else fixed and cleaned up except for the front end, which is what I needed the parts for. We'll use this extra tarp I put down to lay out the tools we'll probably need so you don't have to dig through the box." Ben knelt down, opened the tool box and began carefully setting tools on the canvas.

Qui had moved over to the wall where the damaged parts had been stacked. He stared at the busted headlight, the ripped brake wiring, the remains of the bent front wheel.   "Jaysus," he whispered. Qui picked up the mangled front fender and turned to Ben. "Jaysus," he repeated, much louder. "This looks a lot worse than what you told us."

Ben stood up, went over and took the fender. "Qui, the key word is 'looks'. We slid into a steel signpost and Myrna took the brunt of the force." He tossed the now-useless piece of metal back on the pile. "I told you about all of that. Dammit, you saw my cuts and bruises; that's all it was. Nothing broken, nothing torn up except Myrna and my bank account."

Qui looked doubtfully at the pile of remnants and shook his head.

"Hey, I don't go around doing wild shit when I ride and if there hadn't been the combination of ice and that stupid driver coming up on us so fast and crowding us over, we would have been fine." Ben touched his mate's arm. "Myrna took care of me and she always will, so I don't want you worrying any more than you already do, okay?"

"Alright." Qui took a deep breath and nodded. "I'll try, that's all I can promise. I guess we should be repaying the favor and getting the poor thing put back together, right?"

"That's why we're here." Ben lightly punched Qui's shoulder and they smiled at each other. "Here, I'll show you what we need to do and we'll see if we can't get this done in short order."

Qui studied the layout as Ben pointed out the various tools. He nodded. "Okay, you were right, and a screwdriver is a screwdriver, no matter what you're doing with it, so the basic stuff I know and the rest I can probably handle with a little help. What do you want me to actually be doing?"

Ben was silent for a long moment as he stared at Myrna. He had rehearsed this in his head for months, but now he needed to modify his plan to include Qui. He took three deep breaths, nodded slightly as the rightness of his new strategy flooded through him. He put one hand on Myrna's handlebar and whispered, "We'll get you squared away, my girl."

"The first thing we need to do is get the wheel set on, then we'll tackle the brakes, the headlight, fairing and finish all the little bits." Ben smiled. "Let's go."

Step by step, piece by piece, Ben and Qui carefully reassembled the motorcycle. Qui helped with holding parts in place or fetching tools as Ben made the actual connections and repairs.

The further along they got, the more focused and peaceful Ben felt. The closer they got to completion, the closer he felt to hearing Myrna's voice again. Her muted singing echoed faintly in his soul and grew from an imagined whisper to a siren call. The occasional brush of fingers or a brief hand on his shoulder only increased his joy.

Time passed without marking until Ben and Qui stood looking at the fully restored motorcycle, gleaming in the bright lights of the bay.

"She looks grand, boyo. Right grand."

"Totally wicked pisser." Ben's heart fluttered and he suddenly felt strangely reluctant to go further.

"Shall we be getting her down off those supports, then?"

Ben took a deep breath and held it as anticipation built. Finally, he let out the air in an explosive burst and nodded.

Qui took the back end and Ben the front; on the count of three, they carefully lowered the heavy bike and set it down gently.

"Let me open the bay door before I start her up. If everything's working right I'll need to take her out for a little test ride." Ben started for the door. "Oh, yeah, we should get our jackets on. It's pretty chilly out there."

Ben opened one of the large metal doors about halfway, high enough for him to be able to walk under it. He pushed Myrna over near the opening.

"Okay, girl, let's see what we've got." Ben swallowed as he settled into the seat and he could feel his pulse racing as he put the key into the ignition slot. Ben looked at Qui, who smiled encouragement. He nodded and turned the key.

Brmrmrmrm. The two stroke grumble settled into a growling purr… poTAto, poTAto, poTAto.

A flaming rush roared through Ben as Myrna sang. He swore he could feel an impatient rumble between his thighs as she begged to fly again. He knew he was grinning wide enough to break his face, but he didn't care.

"Hey! Boyo!"

"Huh?" It took a moment for Ben to remember that Qui was standing next to him.

"I'm thinking you'd better get her outside before she takes off without you, the way she's pulling at the bit." Qui had a grin, too, as he handed Ben his helmet and gauntlets.

Ben laughed as he pulled on his gear, but he did feel the tug of need, for both him and Myrna. "Don't worry, I'll take it easy." He used his feet to walk Myrna out into the alley, then eased her into first gear as they puttered sedately down the alley toward the big central parking lot.

At the edge of the paved lot, Ben paused. Qui had followed him, so Ben gave a jaunty wave before patting Myrna's tank and heading out.

The first circle was slow and steady. Ben was tuned in to Myrna, feeling every vibration, every turn of her wheels and every uneven spot in the asphalt. He applied the brakes three times to make sure they were working before he was satisfied and started another pass.

"That's my girl!" cried Ben as Myrna surged forward in second and then third gear. They cornered smoothly and on the straightaway Ben applied the brakes in a soft stop. Myrna growled and Ben gave in. "Alright, we'll go 'round again."

Ben hummed, floating in Myrna's glow, as he sped back up to third gear, leaning a little more on the curves as they went around twice more, giving her a little bit of her head. They rumbled down the straightaway toward Qui. Ben chose his spot and put the brakes on hard. Myrna protested, but obeyed as they came to a solid stop.

poTAto, poTAto, poTAto crooned Myrna as Ben laughed and pounded on her tank. "My beautiful girl!" he yelled, and pounded some more as exhilaration filled him.

"Aye, she's a grand one." Qui was smiling, reflecting Ben's joy.

"She is incredibly wicked fantastic." Ben worked to turn down the wattage on his smile a little. "I do need to make a few more adjustments," he caressed Myrna, "but the roads are good, so we're going home today." Myrna gave an extra loud little growl, seeming to echo that sentiment.

"Hey, as long we're out here, would you do a walkaround and make sure all the lights and directionals are working?"

After they verified the proper functioning of all indicators, they moved back inside. Ben parked Myrna near the tools and laid his helmet and gauntlets on the tarp.

"Thanks. I'll wrap up those last few things; it should only take a few minutes." Ben picked up a pair of needlenose pliers and a screwdriver and knelt down next to Myrna. "Hey, I really appreciate that you came today, but since it didn't take as long as I thought, we can eat lunch at home, or if you want to, you can take off now. I'll still need to lock up before I can leave." Ben looked up at Qui, who was perched on the long workbench. "I hope it hasn't been too boring for you, but I truly am glad you were here. This has meant a lot to me."

"Aye, that's a good idea about lunch, but it's not been boring at all. It's been quite educational, actually." Qui sauntered over and watched as Ben made a few meticulous changes.

"There, that should do it." Ben rose and rested one hand on Myrna's seat, almost glowing with pride and elation.

"Would you be needing any help with clearing up?"

"Are you sure you don't mind?"

"The more hands, the faster we'll be done." Qui smiled.

"Pisser." Ben gave a pat to Myrna. "I'll put my coveralls away and then start sweeping if you can grab the trash and old parts and stick them in the dumpster."

"You've got it."

It was the work of only a few minutes to deposit trash, put away the supports and oil mat and return all the tools to Ben's toolbox and secure it.

Ben stood in the middle of the bay, hands on his hips as he took a look around. Most of the lights were off and the only thing that remained was to move Myrna outside and lock all the outer doors. "I think that should about do it."

"Actually, I was thinking maybe there was one more thing we might want to be doing," said Qui softly.

"I'd love to," Ben smirked, then shook his head, "but this isn't really the right place for that sort of thing."

"Tsk, tsk, such a one-track mind, boyo, but that's not what I had in mind." A smile flicked across Qui's lips but almost immediately morphed into a serious expression. "Do you remember when you first came out to my old place to work on my poor truck?"

"Sure. How could I forget that?" Ben gave a little snort.

"You remember how you watched me doing Tai Chi along the woodline? How you said you wanted what I had?"

Ben was silent for a moment, his thoughts running back to that magical moment, the wonder of watching Qui. His lips narrowed as he also recalled his childish greed, his yearning to possess what he had seen on the ranger's face and the gentle but firm dressing down he had gotten when he had tried to get Qui to teach him. "Yeah." Ben took a deep breath and looked down at the floor. "It was wonderful and I was stupid."

"You were ignorant, not stupid. There's a huge difference and you've come a long way toward getting educated since then. Learning - that's a journey we're both still on." Qui put one hand on Ben's shoulder for a moment. "I would like for us to be doing a shared Tai Chi routine before we leave."

"Huh?" Ben blinked and looked up at Qui.

"Tai Chi session? Here? Now?"

"Um, I'm not sure I'm up for that right now. Or rather, what I should say is that I am too up, too buzzed from getting Myrna put back together." Ben shrugged. "I don't think I could focus properly."

"Would you be willing to give it a try?"

"Is this important?"

"Aye, I think it is. I'm not sure how to be explaining it, but I meant it when I said this trip was educational. You first saw me doing Tai Chi in a place where I felt harmony, at peace." Qui's gaze wandered around the maintenance bay before coming back to Ben. "I've been watching you, and you're different here, different in a way I've never really seen before." Qui paused, brow furrowed as he seemed to be attempting to capture an elusive thought. "For you, it seems to me that this is a place of comfort and competence. If you're really after wanting to help find yourself and what is inside you, then I'm thinking a session here might help you do that."

"Oh, c'mon." Ben snorted, tossed a hand. "This is just where I work. What's so frigging special about that?"

"You in this space. That's what special."

"Jesus, that's just –" Ben cut his reply short as he absorbed Qui's steady regard. He took in a breath, blew it out through pursed lips. "We haven't been practicing much lately."

"I'm not after fixing your form today, boyo." The corner of Qui's lips twitched ever so slightly. "So you'll do it, then? I'm just asking for the basic Yang 24 short form, nice and easy."

"Alright, what the hell. Let's do it."

Ben closed the bay door. They both shed their jackets and boots. In stocking feet, they stood facing each other in the middle of the bay. Together they did several basic stretches.

"Ben, before we start the routine, I want to spend some extra time just centering." Qui leaned in close and put a hand on each side of Ben's head. "Be aware of everything around you. Pull energy into your center as you find a spot to focus on. Don't worry about doing everything right and just let it flow." He dropped his hands and moved over to stand next to Ben. "I want this to be for you, so take however much time you need and let me know when you're ready to start."

Ben nodded, thinking about Qui's words as he settled into the starting position. He lined up his body, let his shoulders sink and slowed his breathing.   He took a long, deliberate look at the parts of the bay he could see without twisting his head, trying to focus on details of the things he took for granted every day. The clock over the workbenches behind him ticked and he caught the tiny hitch as the second hand jerked past the half hour mark.

The air was still cool from when the big door had been open; Ben felt the chill on his arms and face, embracing the nip. He closed his eyes and let the faint odor of machines, oil, fuel and a tiny high note of polish seep into his nostrils. The heater came on with a clunk and a whuff.

When a breath of warm air tickled the back of his neck, Ben opened his eyes. Almost instinctively, he sought out Myrna and the vision filled his sight. He drew strength from the air around him, from Myrna, pulled it into his middle as he relaxed into stillness. "Let's go."

"Aye. Don't think, just be. Stillness in motion."

Ben nodded again and moved to part the horse's mane. He kept his focus on his middle and let his body travel in the remembered motions. With each position Ben felt himself sinking deeper and deeper into a pool of serenity. He still carried within him the joy of his beloved Myrna's resurrection, but transmuted into life-affirming tranquil energy.

Legs moved, arms swept and his body turned. Unhurried control through the white crane spreading his wings. Ben played the lute in a soundless tune; by the first single whip he was no longer conscious of individual impulses, nor the cold of the hard concrete under his feet.   Seamless kicks, balancing as if the very air supported him.

Ben's eyes closed but he still saw, an inner vision of engines and gears. Hands waved gracefully, fingers spread just so as muscles moved by themselves. Centered in a sphere of energy that fed his limbs, receiving and giving back.   Ben worked the shuttles as if working Myrna's controls while she carried him through the routine. Final crossing of hands and melting into the end position.

Loose-limbed peace radiated from the ball of warmth in his gut. Ben stood, eyes closed, unaware of any thought except the intense desire to never leave this moment.

From somewhere very far, Ben thought he heard a voice. He shifted his focus, blinked twice and looked around.

"Ben?" Qui ran a finger very lightly along the edge of Ben's chin.

Ben sucked in a sudden breath as the touch seemed to spark along his energized skin. He opened his mouth and looked up into his mate's blue eyes as he tried to re-engage mouth and brain.

"You look amazing, love."

"Oh, my fucking god." Ben whispered the words, then a little louder. "My wonderful wicked fucking god."

"How do you feel?"

"I think…" Ben swallowed. "Like I rode Myrna to heaven." He shook his head. "That was absolutely wicked pisser."

Qui opened his arms and Ben dove forward into a tight hug. "You look the way I feel when I do a session on a spring morning in the trees. I’m glad this has been such a grand day for you."

"It's been a fantastic day." Ben squeezed hard and buried his head against Qui's chest. "I don't know how to thank you enough for being here and helping me so much."

"To be seeing you so happy is more than reward enough for me."

They stood together, Ben practically humming with pleasure.

Eventually Qui pulled back a little and ran a thumb across Ben's cheek. "So, you're still liking Tai Chi, then?

"I take back anything stupid or snarky I ever said about Tai Chi. I don't even mind those belly buster exercises." Ben leaned into Qui's hand as it cradled the side of his head. "I have to admit, though, that I did think it would take years before I really 'got' this stuff."

Qui chuckled. "It will be years before you can fully center and do it completely without working so hard at it, boyo, so don't even be thinking about touching the sword for a good long while."

"Killjoy." Ben made a fake grimace that he quickly turned into a smile. "If I can feel like that again, though, it will be worth the work. I didn't truly understand just how good it could be."

"Aye, it is wonderful. When I watched you working on Myrna, Jaysus, even from the time you walked in the door, there was something that told me you felt different when you're here. Think about today, how you felt, what you did, and we'll keep working on it together to get you where you want to be." Qui lifted an eyebrow. "And there's no reason you can't be practicing here if you want. I do a session when I'm out in Keo, on my lunch break or waiting around to meet someone or even before or after I'm officially on duty. 'Tis a great way to reduce stress, or to gather energy to get back to work."

Ben wrinkled his nose. "I'll think about it, but this isn't exactly the sort of place where they’d expect that kind of behavior."

"Do it before or after the others are here if that bothers you. But 'tis something to be thinking about."

"Okay. But right now I am getting hungry, and I'd like to get Myrna home. So how about we lock up here and leave?"

"That's fine with me. I'll get the lunch boxes and head back. See you when you get there."

"Sounds like a plan."

Ben felt a warm tingle lingering inside as he went to open the bay door. It had been a magnificent day – Myrna was back, Tai Chi had been incredible and Qui had clearly trusted his repairs enough to not bothering to offer to trail him home.   He even felt some leftover satisfaction from having dealt with those miserable damned forms the previous evening.

Yes, life was good today.

**** **** ****

Ben stopped to fill the gas tank. After that it was a short ride home under clear blue skies, but by the time he rolled Myrna into Jane's garage, Ben was more than grateful he had remembered to put the liner in his leather jacket. He left jacket, gauntlets and helmet on the motorcycle. He found his leather chaps that he had left on a shelf and added them to his other gear. Before going inside, Ben spent a few minutes talking to Myrna as he used a soft cloth to remove the little bit of road dirt she had accumulated.

The table was already set and the contents of their lunchboxes laid out. Qui was at the stove stirring something in a pot.

"Welcome home. Looks like the ladies are still out, so it's just us." Qui waved his spoon. "Thought you might be wanting something warm, so I'm heating up some of that soup Jane made the other day. It's just about ready."

"Hey, that was a great idea, thanks.   It was pretty cold out there."

There was very little conversation as both men concentrated on the hearty beef and barley soup, accompanied by thick roast chicken sandwiches. When the last chewy oatmeal cookie was finished, Ben sighed. "That really hit the spot. Kind of like this whole day has been, you know, what with getting Myrna back together and that incredibly pisser session… it's just been fantastic." Ben reached across the table to hold one of Qui's hands and smirked a little. "Even the 'wake up call' was good."

"Always glad to be of service, boyo." Qui grinned and briefly squeezed Ben's hand. "I was doing some thinking on my way home."

"Yeah? You got something else cooked up? Although I don't know how the day could get much better."

"Oh, I dunno. I was noticing how bright the sun was and how nice the roads were, and thinking how we don't get too many days like this until spring. So, of course, that got me to thinking that this would be a grand day for you to be out riding your motorbike."

Ben went totally still and stared at Qui, not even noticing how tight his grip had become on Qui's hand. His tongue briefly flicked out to touch the corner of his mouth as he tried to recover his breath.

"Really? You've done so much already, I wasn't even going to bring it up." Ben felt his pulse start racing.

Qui stood up, pulled Ben to his feet and hugged him.

"You've waited months for this, love. You need to be taking her out to get reacquainted."

"Are you sure you don't mind?" Ben pulled back so he could look up into Qui's face. "I've got two helmets if you want to come along."

Qui laughed. "No disrespect to your girl, but it is frigging cold out there and I'm happy to let the two of you be alone together on this special occasion."

"You're the best!" Ben pulled Qui down for a long kiss, then almost danced toward the door. He stopped abruptly, turned around. "I should help with the dishes."

"Don't be worrying your head about that." Qui had a big grin as he waved Ben away. "Just go."

"Love you!" Ben thundered down the stairs to fetch an extra sweatshirt and a thick scarf. Back in the garage, he threw on the shirt, geared up, wrapped the scarf around the upturned collar of his jacket and put on his helmet.

Ben pulled the garage door closed after he wheeled Myrna out. He had thought about just taking off on the way back from Midway, but then had firmly set that notion aside, intending to spend the rest of the afternoon with his mate. Now that Qui's generous gesture had freed him, Ben had to gather himself and climb down from his high before he could trust himself not to run too fast and hard. For almost a full minute, he simply stood looking at Myrna as he focused on breathing slowly.

"Let's go for a ride, my girl." Ben could feel the big grin on his face as he settled onto the leather seat. Myrna started up with a deep roar; the metal vibrating between his thighs sent a surge of current up his spine. His heart was racing again, pulsing in time with Myrna's engine, as he eased her into gear and headed down the drive.

They turned left, away from town. This far out, there was almost no other traffic on a Sunday afternoon, so Ben let Myrna have her head for a bit, while he kept a vigilant eye on the road conditions.

The next couple of hours passed quickly. Ben reveled in the push and roar of the wind created by their passage, Myrna's gravelly bass drumbeat punctuating the miles running smoothly under her tires. They moved seamlessly as one through corners, down dips and up hills. Long straightaways with no traffic demanded cranking the throttle as Ben yelled in delight.

The short winter day brought the gloom of dusk far too swiftly to suit Ben's mood, but he didn't want to abuse his freedom and reluctantly turned Myrna's head toward home. They crunched up the driveway as full dark was falling. Inside the garage, Ben took his gear off and carefully checked Myrna for any nicks, scrapes or road debris.

"Well, that was a truly wicked frickin' beautiful ride." Ben ran a hand along the tank and seat. "I need to do something nice for Qui tonight to repay him for his help." He couldn't help snerking a little at that sentiment; it was highly unlikely that would be a hardship for him.

As Ben passed through the laundry room, Jane's Rottweilers, Dexy and Delilah, gave him a friendly whoof, but did not stir from their baskets where they were engaged in serious destruction of new chew bones. He went on to the welcome warmth of the kitchen.

"Hey, something smells terrific!" The tangy odor of the promised Moroccan beef and sweet potato stew filled the air and was enough to make his mouth start salivating. "Need help with anything?"

"Appreciate your asking, but there won't be much of anything needs doing for at least half an hour. I'll be starting the rolls and Rafa wants to try her hand at the salad after she gets done seeing to Cel, but the table will need to be set." Jane smiled and got up from the table. "From the sounds of it, I reckon you got your motorcycle put back together."

"We did. Qui came along and helped and everything went great. Myrna runs wicked amazing, and Qui gave me his blessing to go riding all afternoon."

Jane gave Ben a quick hug. "I'm glad everything worked out so well."

"Thanks. I think I'd better go get cleaned up, but I'll be happy to tell you about it at dinner."

"That's a good idea, son. Qui is downstairs and Rafa is out in the barn, so you can tell all of us then."

Ben tossed a casual salute of acknowledgement and went downstairs. He saw that the door at the bottom was partially open, so he slowed his steps and stopped just inside. Ben looked around, then saw Qui on the sofa. His lover was stretched out, a paperback book lying on his chest and one arm flopped down. Ben melted inside at the look of peacefulness on Qui's face and could not bring himself to wake him up. Instead, he closed and locked their door, tiptoed into the bedroom to remove his boots and clothing, then silently made his way to the bathroom. He paused for just a moment in the doorway, smiling as he looked at Qui and touched the emblem that hung on the silver chain around his neck, before he went inside.

Hot water washed away any cold still remaining from his long ride. Ben was warm inside and out, spirits still high from earlier events. He hummed and occasionally broke into song. Even the soap made him happy – Qui had made the last supply run for them and brought home a six-pack of natural, pine-scented bars. He paused a few times just to draw in a deep whiff, but, mindful that dinnertime was quickly approaching, he reluctantly did a final rinse and dried off.

Ben went to the bedroom and dressed in jeans, t-shirt, sweatshirt and sneakers. When he came out, Qui was just waking and stretching to his full length.

"Hey, how's it doing?" Ben stood, hands on hips, and grinned.

Qui yawned as he swung his legs around and sat up. "Good. I had a nice nap. How was your afternoon?"

"Totally pisser." Ben leaned forward, putting his hands on Qui's knees. "I really appreciate everything you did today. How about some 'us' time after dinner? Anything you want to do, your choice?"

"Best offer I've had all day." Qui stretched forward enough to brush his lips against Ben's. "You realize that means there will be foreplay, lots of slow, lovely, lingering foreplay?"

"I guess I'll just have to deal with it, won't I?" Ben gave him a quick kiss, then straightened back up with a cheeky smirk. "Dinner should be ready soon, so I'll see you upstairs. Best conserve your energy and not climb the stairs too fast, old man; you're going to need it later."

Ben relished the quiet laughter that followed him up the stairs.

**** **** ****

Dinner had been excellent, the crisp salad, crusty dinner rolls and vanilla chocolate chip cream pie perfect complements to the savory stew. Ben had tried not to monopolize the conversation with his exuberance, but the others were indulgent and they actually had gotten into a thoughtful discussion when Rafa had asked about his Tai Chi experience in the maintenance bay. Ben had dish-drying duty tonight; after the last item was put away, Ben said his goodnights as Rafa went up to work on reading for the new semester, and Jane took her knitting to the family room.

Ben felt as if he were practically floating down the stairs, the all-day buzz heightened even further with anticipation. He opened the door and stopped to survey the room, dimly lit by a single floor lamp next to the sofa. A fire crackled in the fireplace, and soft instrumental flute and guitar music that Ben didn't recognize emanated from Qui's small stereo. The rollaway bed they had kept after Thanksgiving was opened near the fireplace. In jeans and a faded green t-shirt, Qui was opening a bottle of wine at the table; two wineglasses and an ice bucket were already in place.

Ben took a slow, deep breath as he gazed at his lover – the open bed was definitely an encouraging sign. The towels and bottle of lube peeking out from under a pillow looked even better. He closed and locked the door before walking over to the table, where Qui had poured wine into both glasses and put the bottle into the bucket.

"Hey, my wonderful studly one. I'm all yours tonight, so care to enlighten me about the agenda?" Ben raised an eyebrow and ran his tongue around his lips.

"Been thinking about that, boyo." Qui nodded slowly, almost to himself. "'Twould probably be a good idea to be taking off our shoes first, so we can get comfortable."

"Shoes, yeah, good idea. And I like the sound of comfortable." Ben swiftly toed off his sneakers. For good measure, he pulled off his sweatshirt and draped it over a chair. "Next?"

"Let's have some wine and sit on the sofa." Qui followed his own directions, taking the ice bucket with him and setting it down near the end of the couch.

Ben picked up the other glass and joined his mate, Qui at one end and him in the middle.

"And now for some nice craic."

"Huh?" Ben sat for several seconds, mouth slightly open as he blinked. Qui could surely not mean what he thought he had just heard. "Crack? What the fuck?"

"No, craic. Spelled C-R-A-I-C. Means a good time, pleasant conversation with friends over a few drinks."

"Ooookaaay. You mean you just want to talk? Really?"

Ben's disappointment must have showed in both face and tone, for a half-smile twitched at Qui's lips as he serenely replied, "Aye, 'tis a pleasant way to be spending a few hours, don't you think?"

Taking a tiny sip of wine to buy some time, Ben sat with narrowed eyes as he stared at his mate. "Alright, I suppose that would be nice. Before we start, though, I want to know if you're serious or if you're having me on."

"Jaysus, such a suspicious mind." Qui shook his head. "'Tis quite serious I am, boyo. I'm sure we've had conversations about patience and persistence. Or maybe that was about rewards being sweeter when you work harder for them."

"Oh, yeah. And I've got the muscles from all those fucking pushups to prove it." Ben rolled his eyes and gave a very exaggerated sigh.

There was a twinkle barely discernible in Qui's eyes as he added, "If it makes you feel better, you may rub my feet while we talk."

"Hell, that's a start, I suppose." Ben snorted, then quickly added, "Deal," before Qui changed his mind.

Qui nodded, his mouth widening into an almost-smile, shifting around so his back was against the arm of the sofa and his legs extended down towards Ben.

Ben set his glass on the back of the couch, grabbed Qui's feet and settled them into a comfortable spot on his lap. He quickly slipped the wool socks off before Qui could say anything. A possessive hand on his lover's ankles, he got his glass and raised it to Qui.

"Okay, it's your nickel. What shall we 'craic' about?"

Qui raised his own glass, a slight shake of his head seeming to indicate that he intended to overlook Ben's misuse of the noun. "To Myrna!"

Ben held his glass up higher for a moment. "To Myrna!"

They both took a drink. This time, Ben sipped slowly, to savor the white wine. It was a bit like his lover – a firm presence, but with woody undertones and a note of sweetness when you let it settle in. "Nice wine. I like it. But I'm still not sure what you want to talk about."

"When we were at Midway this morning, you were very focused, and it was pretty businesslike without much chitchat.   I'd like to hear about this connection you feel with machines, what you were thinking then and later when you were out riding. It's not a side of you I've really seen much of."

"Fair enough. I can't promise you coherence… it's not something I've thought about, to be honest." Ben took another sip of wine, absently running his other hand along one of Qui's feet as he considered Qui's request.

Slowly, Ben let thoughts become words. He started with his early experiences with machines at summer jobs, becoming more entranced with motorcycles and the connection he began feeling with them. He didn't realize how his face changed when he brought up Myrna, a special smile with distant eyes as he went on about his 'first love'. Ben stumbled when he tried to describe how it seemed he could often 'feel' a problem with a motorcycle, even when he did not yet have the experience or technical knowledge to describe or discern what the full nature of the problem was.

Ben rambled on with an occasional smile or word of encouragement from Qui, stopping only once as they both took a piss, and Qui switched off the music before adding more logs to the fire. By the time they emptied the bottle, Ben was waxing almost mystical about the high he got when he was out riding for the pure pleasure of it, how he and Myrna seemed to feed each other energy and completion.

The last drop of wine trickled down Ben's throat and he set the glass aside. "You know, it's kind of funny…" His voice trailed off as he absently massaged Qui's feet with both hands. He frowned, trying to rediscover what had seemed like a brilliant but elusive observation.

Qui moved his legs and scooted over to sit next to his mate, taking one of Ben's hands in the process. "Tell me, love, what's funny?"

Ben turned his head, their faces now only inches apart. "It just struck me that when I have a perfect ride, just totally wicked pisser, I get this feeling inside like, I don't know, like everything is perfect in the world and I couldn't be happier." Ben sucked on his lower lip for a moment before letting it slide out. "And I just realized that feeling, so perfect, so full of joy, is an awful lot like what I felt in the Tai Chi session today. I never knew there could be anything else like what happens with Myrna and me, except making love with you."

"That sounds like a good thing to be knowing about yourself, about what you can do and feel." Qui softly kissed the palm of Ben's hand.

"Wow, that is pretty frigging pisser, isn't it?" Ben had a bemused smile. "But we both know I would never have figured any of this shit out without you."

"Perhaps, but it wouldn't have happened if you hadn't made me realize I needed to go with you to Midway. That means we were both learning things today, so that's a good day's work, boyo. And now I'm thinking I'd like to do some other sorts of exploring, love."

Ben's eyes widened as Qui pulled him close, then he melted into a long kiss. Ben tasted lingering traces of wine, tongues moving around each other in a coquettish pursuit. For several minutes they traded kisses and caresses, both men content to simply enjoy one another's presence.

They had shifted positions so Ben was straddling Qui's lap, and they were now resting chest to chest. Ben was intent on trying to get Qui's intransigent t-shirt out of his pants when he paused to enjoy the sensation of Qui pulling him close.

Ben's hips slipped forward and he felt a familiar spark in his gut as their crotches rubbed together, the bulge in Qui's jeans all too obvious. A mischievous glint lit his eyes as he put his arms around Qui and nuzzled his neck.

"Hey, love. Been a great day, and I still can't get over the totally fucking pisser ride this afternoon." Ben captured Qui's mouth and let his tongue make a thorough survey. When he was finished, he nuzzled some more and whispered into Qui's ear, dropping his voice to a low sultry tickle.   "I'd like you to have a great ride, too, for being so wonderful.   If you're into exploration, I'd love to have you take a tour inside me." Ben wiggled his hips. "Or however you want me will be good." He pulled his head back and leered as he firmly pushed his crotch against Qui's bulge. "Really good."

Qui laughed, a deep guffaw that jiggled Ben. "Taking a ride…" he grinned and shook his head, "aye, now that is a grand offer I can appreciate, boyo."

Ben pushed back, slid off Qui's knees and stood up. "Soooooo…" He turned around, took a few steps toward the open bed, and wiggled his rear. "We just gonna keep talking or you gonna do something about it?"

Qui rose slowly and very deliberately reached over to turn off the lamp. The room grew even dimmer, lit by the uneven flames of the flaring fire. "Seems like an RSVP is in order." He moved up behind Ben and held him close, his arms over Ben's as he slid his hands under Ben's t-shirt.

"Oh, yeah." Ben leaned back into the warmth of his lover's body. "About time for some action." He tried to move one of his arms so he could unfasten his pants.

Qui's arms tightened. He growled into Ben's ear, his voice a good octave deeper than usual, "My ride, my rules, boyo. And it's my turn for a piece of that hot sexy arse that Myrna was monopolizing all afternoon." He licked Ben's ear before biting down.

Ben gasped as his knees buckled and his eyes closed. That damned voice had just tightened his jeans to the point of pain. He moaned as large hands glided across his belly, occasionally sliding up to tweak nipples that were already upright. If it hadn't been for the strong arms holding him up, Ben would have melted down into a puddle on the floor as Qui plied his magic tongue on Ben's neck and ears.

"Liking that, are you?"

"Awwwooh."

"I'll be taking that for a yes, I think."

Ben was beyond thinking anything as Qui finally released his arms long enough to raise Ben's shirt. The cool air and the tongue down his spine made him shiver. The hand that grasped his crotch and squeezed lightly made him cry out. "Agh, oh, God!"

Qui turned Ben around and pulled him close for a long kiss, his hands kneading Ben's rear as they moved against each other.

Ben sucked for air when Qui finally ended the kiss. "Jesus, I'm gonna come in my pants if you keep this up."

"We can't be ending things that quick, now can we?" Qui took three steps back. "How about you be a good boy and undress me?" At Ben's eager advance, he smirked and held up a finger. "Slowly. If you think you can manage that, boyo."

Given a moment to recover, Ben's brain had re-engaged. "Yeah, I think I can handle that, old man," he leered back as he moved forward. He pulled Qui's t-shirt from his pants, then casually used the edge of it to wipe off the sweat that had begun to form on his face. He grinned, an insolent challenge, as he carefully rolled up the bottom halfway. Ben ignored the obvious swelling at Qui's crotch, concentrating instead on Qui's stomach with his tongue. He took several short, light swipes, dipped into Qui's belly button, then suddenly made a long sweep just above the top of his jeans. That earned him a quiver that rolled all the way up that tight core.

Ben moved a little higher, letting his hands roam across skin as he used his mouth to lift the fabric, bunching it under Qui's chin. He attacked Qui's nipples, alternating lips, tongue, teeth and fingers until both were hard nubs and Qui was breathing fast.

"You're too frigging tall." Ben grabbed Qui's neck and pulled him down so he could slide the t-shirt over his head. "There, that's better." Two steps back gave him room to admire the view, thankful that his own erection had calmed down a bit. "But we need to get the rest of you naked."

Ben was becoming impatient to move things along faster, so he made quick work of unbuttoning Qui's jeans although he was careful when he pulled down both pants and briefs together. Qui obligingly lifted one leg at a time so Ben could remove the clothes and toss them aside. Ben stood back, then made a circle around his lover. He paused to massage Qui's rear for a moment before continuing. Facing Qui once more, inspiration struck and he suddenly knelt down and inhaled his cock. Ben quickly had his mate groaning with lust and a rock-hard erection as he sucked and squeezed. Just as suddenly, he stood up again.

"You know, I'm still waiting at the starting gate for that ride." Ben captured Qui's cock and rubbed it against his own stomach, running one finger around the tip. He flashed that insolent grin again.

"Be careful what you ask for," growled Qui, his voice a deep rasp now. He grabbed the front of Ben's jeans with one hand and pulled hard; with his other hand he slipped the button and yanked the zipper down.

Ben grunted and let go of Qui's cock as Qui picked him up, tossed him on the bed face-up and practically ripped off his jeans, underwear and socks. Then Qui was looming over him, knees along Ben's hips. Ben tried to move, but his forearms were pinned down above his head.

Qui dipped his head for a teasing kiss as he let his erection dangle down to torment Ben's cock, now quickly back to full strength and begging for attention. Qui lowered himself to lie atop his lover, sweat easing their movement against each other. He released Ben's arms and allowed his hands to roam freely as he licked and lightly bit.

"Oh, yeah… fucking good." Ben tried to wrap his legs around Qui's hips as he bucked and moaned at the delicious friction.

Qui moved off to one side, going to his knees as he flipped Ben over. "Get that arse up!" Qui lifted Ben's hips, giving him a loud smack on each cheek as Ben wriggled.

The sudden blows sent heat shooting up Ben's spine. He moaned and pushed his rear up higher as Qui shoved a towel-covered pillow under him. A ball of lightning ignited in his gut when lube splashed along his crack and a slick finger entered him. Sparks shot off from the lightning as his knees were shoved apart and a second finger joined the first. Blood raced in his ears.

"Jesus, yeah. Fuck me!"

A feral growl answered as fingers were withdrawn. Fever-flushed, Ben grunted loudly when Qui mounted him and his cock pushed in, sending the fire higher.

Ben moaned and begged as Qui plunged all the way in, then began thrusting in and out.   Pressure, fullness, glorious scrape over his prostate time and time again. Fiery flesh slapping together as Qui drove in and Ben shoved back to take in that magnificent monster cock.

"Harder! Fuck me, dammit!"

Qui moved into high gear, stroking in and out, faster and faster, hanging onto Ben's hips and shouting his own avid passion. The bed creaked and moved under them with the intensity of their love-making.

Ben grabbed his cock and fisted it hard. His eyes were closed, a red haze behind his eyelids. The musk of their sex filled his nose and the hammering of his heart matched the pounding of his ass. He felt his balls tightening as they raced to their climax. The world stopped as the lightning in his gut exploded into blazing sheets of white fire. He shuddered, barely aware of the liquid spurting over his fingers, and slipped into ecstasy.

Vague consciousness of heat against his back caught Ben's attention. There was an arm draped over him as he lay on his side, so he captured the paw attached to it and kissed it. He felt like he was floating in a warm tub of sensual joy. "Mmmm, that was nice," he murmured to nobody in particular. He shifted onto his back, vaguely aware of the spitting of the fire. "Hell of a ride." He grinned.

"Aye, 'twas a hell of a ride." Qui ran a towel along his mate. "Not too rough, was it?"

"Naw. I love it when you're strong. Probably be sore later, but that was well worth it, love."

They lay quietly for a while, exchanging a few soft kisses.

A thought had been teasing Ben's brain, and he finally pinned it down. "Qui?"

"Hmm?"

"Does it bother you when I spend time with Myrna instead of you? I mean, you're not, like, jealous or anything if she's 'monopolizing' me?"

Qui laughed. "Jaysus, that's a silly thought." He gave Ben another kiss. "We both have things we like to do in life that mean not being together. Myrna is good for you. She makes you happy, so that makes me happy." He pulled the covers up. "Besides, I figure she keeps you warmed up for me."

"Huh?"

"All that vibration, boyo." Qui settled onto his side, facing Ben. "Love you."

"Love you, too." Ben turned and snuggled close into Qui, his back against his lover's chest. It took him a few moments to figure out what the hell Qui had meant, but when he did, he sniggered quietly before drifting into dreams of gigantic vibrators with handlebars.

 

finis


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